MY CRAZY CHICKEN-RICE NOODLE STIR FRY

As seen on The View's Gluten free recipes from Ming Tsai.

Serves 4

8 ounces transparent rice noodles (rice sticks)
2 tablespoons Wanjashan Gluten Free Tamari
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon sambal
3 tablespoons grapeseed or canola oil
3 shallots, sliced 1/8 inch thick
1 pound ground chicken
1 cup packed baby spinach
1/2 cup scallions, green and white parts, sliced 1/8 inch thick
1/4 cup Thai or sweet basil leaves cut into 1/8-inch ribbons
1 lime, quartered, for garnish
4 sprigs of Thai or sweet basil for garnish

1. Fill a large bowl with warm water. Add the noodles and soak until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine the tamari, lime juice, sugar, and sambal, and stir until the sugar is dissolved.

3. Heat a wok or large, heavy sauté pan over high heat. Add the oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add the shallots and stir-fry until brown, about 1 minute. Add the chicken and stir-fry, breaking up the meat, until cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add the noodles and sauce mixture and heat through, stirring. Add the spinach, scallions and basil ribbons and toss well. Garnish with the lime wedges and basil sprigs and serve

THE BEST FROSTED SUGAR COOKIES

Back to the basics with a recipe from grade school.

Ingredients
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
3 cups flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 400º.

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl & set aside.

In a separate bowl, combine butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Beat until mixed well. Add the dry ingredients in slowly & mix well. Chill for at least an hour to stiffen the dough. Roll the dough out with a rolling pin & cut shapes with cookie cutters OR form dough balls and flatten into thick circles with your hands.

Bake 8-10 mins or until just the edges of cookies start to turn a very, very light golden brown. Don’t over-bake. For an extra-doughy consistency, remove the cookies before the edges start to brown.

*****

FROSTING:
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 Tbsp vanilla
3 Tbsp milk
1 egg yolk (optional)
5-6 cups powdered sugar (thicken to desired consistency)
food coloring

Whisk butter, vanilla, milk and egg yolk together. Slowly mix in powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until the frosting reaches your desired consistency. If it gets too thick, add more milk in very small amounts, about 1 tsp at a time.

Fudgy Chocolate Brownies

Recipe courtesy of My Father’s Daughter: Delicious, Easy Recipes Celebrating Family & Togetherness by Gwyneth Paltrow

These are about as healthy as brownies can get without sacrificing flavor.
Makes 12

INGREDIENTS

2 cups white spelt flour (preferably King Arthur)
1 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup brown rice syrup (or light agave nectar)
1/2 cup strong brewed coffee
1/2 cup soymilk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons oil
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, divided

PREPARATION
Heat oven to 350°. Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and a pinch of salt into a bowl. Whisk maple syrup, oil, brown rice syrup, coffee, soymilk and vanilla in another bowl. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Pour half the batter into a greased 9" x 11" baking dish; top with half the chips. Pour remaining batter into dish and top with remaining chips. Bake until knife comes out with crumbs adhering to it, 30 minutes. Let cool.

The skinny

348 calories per brownie, 15 g fat (3 g saturated), 53 g carbs, 4 g fiber, 5 g protein

Brownie/Cookie Dough Sandwiches

Brownie and cookie dough? Yes, please!

Brownie Cookie:

1 cup unsalted butter

1 cup white sugar

3/4 packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and then the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition. Combine the salt, cocoa, flour, baking powder and baking soda and gradually stir into the creamed mixture.

3. Shape dough into 1 1/2 T sized balls and place on a baking sheet. Flatten cookies slightly with the bottom of a drinking glass or your palm.

4. Bake 8-10 minutes or until the cookies are puffy and the tops are cracked, but still soft. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cookie Dough Filling:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 T brown sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
1 13 oz container marshmallow creme
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions:

1. With an electric mixer, cream butter until fluffy. Add sugar and beat well. Add flour and beat until all the flour is incorporated. Add remaining ingredients and beat until mixture is smooth. (It will be fairly thick).

Assembling the sandwiches when cookies are cool:

1. Scoop about 3T of filling onto to bottom of a cookie. Top with another cookie.

Yield: About 15 large cookie sandwiches.

Peanut Butter Hot Fudge Cupcakes

INGREDIENTS FOR THE CUPCAKES:
1 whole Egg
¾ cups Brown Sugar
½ cups Milk
½ cups Plus 1 Tablespoon Heavy Cream
½ cups Butter, Melted
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
2 Tablespoons Sour Cream
1-⅛ cup All-purpose Flour
¼ cups Dark Cocoa Powder
1-¼ teaspoon Baking Soda
½ teaspoons Salt
¼ cups Homemade Hot Fudge (recipe Below)

INGREDIENTS FOR THE BUTTERCREAM:
½ cups Butter, Softened
⅔ cups Peanut Butter
3 cups Powdered Sugar (you May Need 1 More Cup)
1 Tablespoon Of Milk (have 1-2 More On Hand)
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 pinch Salt

FOR THE HOT FUDGE SAUCE:
1 cup Sugar
1 cup Dark Cocoa Powder
1 pinch Salt
2 Tablespoons Flour
1 cup Boiling Water Or Scalding Milk
1 Tablespoon Butter
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

For Cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a bowl, whisk egg and sugar until smooth and no lumps remain. Add milk, cream, butter and vanilla, and mix until combined. Stir in sour cream.

Sift dry ingredients together and then add to the wet mixture. Mix until batter is smooth, then swirl in fudge sauce. Line a muffin tin (12 count) with liners and using a 1/4 cup measure, add batter to each cup. Bake for 15-18 minutes. Let cool before frosting.

For frosting:
Cream butter and peanut butter together in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add powdered sugar with mixer on low speed and gradually add milk and vanilla extract. Add a pinch of salt and mix until frosting is smooth. If too thick, add more milk; if too thin, add more sugar. Frost the cooled cupcakes as desired.

For Homemade Fudge:
Combine sugar, cocoa, salt, and flour in a bowl or pot over a double boiler. Bring water or milk to a boil in another saucepan or in the microwave. Gradually add hot liquid to sugar mixture. Stir constantly until mixture thickens.

Once it has reached the desired thickness, remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Drizzle over cupcakes and store the rest of the sauce in the fridge for 1-2 weeks.

Blueberry Bread

Ingredients

1 whole Egg
1 cup Milk
3 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
2 cups All-purpose Flour
1 cup Sugar
2½ teaspoons Baking Powder
½ teaspoons Salt
2 cups Fresh Or Frozen Blueberries

Preparation Instructions

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2) In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, milk and oil.

3) In a separate smaller bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Gradually add this mixture to the milk mixture. Whisk together until just combined. Fold in the blueberries.

4) Pour mixture into a greased 9×5-inch loaf pan. Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

5) Cool for 10 minutes before removing from loaf pan; transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

Homemade Applesauce

I haven't tried this yet but I am saving this recipe in hopes that my apple tree will be good to me this year.

Make this super simple applesauce recipe in your slow cooker. You can eat this Slow Cooker Applesauce warm or cold, or freeze for future use.

Cooking Time: 8 hr 30 min
Ingredients

* 8 to 10 apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
* 1/2 cup water
* 1/2 cup white sugar
* 1/3 cup brown sugar
* 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

1. Put apples in slow cooker and pour water over them. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

2. Then add the sugars and cinnamon and cook for another 30 minutes on low.

3. Mush the mixture with a potato masher and stir to desired thickness if still lumpy.

4. Sprinkle top with cinnamon if serving warm.